


Thorns And Ravens

by JHR_Angel, Pretty_Odd



Series: Mafia Stories [1]
Category: Not a fan fic, Original Work
Genre: Drug Use, F/M, New York, mafia, not a fan fic but i posted it here because why the fuck not
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-10-19
Updated: 2017-12-06
Packaged: 2019-01-19 14:49:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 8,262
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12412389
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JHR_Angel/pseuds/JHR_Angel, https://archiveofourown.org/users/Pretty_Odd/pseuds/Pretty_Odd
Summary: Don't come looking for us. We will find you. We always do.





	1. Prologue

Who are we? You don’t know who we are but we know you. Every breath you make, every step you take. We will hunt you down if you wrong us and torture you in the worst way imaginable. We know what you’re thinking, call the police and well guess what honey they’re fucking deathly afraid of us. Something tells us you should be scared too. Think of us like the ghosts of a haunted house, we’re there, lurking, hiding, but only if you really believe. Don’t come looking for us, we will find you. We always do.

 

* * *

 

 

A folder is slammed onto the table, sending the other papers flying off the desk. The man in the chair doesn’t flinch, only moves his hand to exhale a cloud of smoke. He raises an eyebrow questioningly before sending the other man out of the room; he slams the butt of the cigarette into the ash tray and picks up the folder. It’s got pictures, head shots, of different people. His mocha brown eyes scan over the pages before he stops on one. The image is blurred and obscured, the only thing visible is the sharp jawline of a man and the rim of his hat. The profile reads Marko Black. The ring leader.

He’s got short brown hair and eyes, always wears a hat. Marko is mysterious in every way, very few people outside of Thorn have seen his face. Even less have survived to describe it, his face is the last thing people see before they die. He’s not necessarily tall or strong, but he makes up for it in wit and cunning. That’s how he came to be the leader of the Thorn, killing to get to the top. That’s all he is, a cold hearted killer with brains. The Manipulator. Danger Level: Extremely dangerous, kill on sight.

The detective wasn’t fazed by this at all, only taking a sip of the cold coffee that had sat on his desk for hours. He moved his hand to flip to the next page, taking in the details of the photo of the man in front of him. The picture is much clearer this time, the man’s hair is messy and stick’s up in almost every direction, it’s icy blue in colour and completely unnatural. Everything about this man screams unnatural, his wide toothy grin and death stare bores holes into one’s soul. It was clear this man was insane. The detective’s suspicions were confirmed when he read over the part about him spending time in a mental asylum.  His name is Anthony Lawton. The Insane. Danger Level: extremely dangerous, kill on sight.

This time the detective raised an eyebrow, as if this entire thing was some fun game to play. Most of the cases he got were robberies, or murder cases, he’s never had anything as big as this. He was going to be the one to take down the Empire, he could almost see the headlines of papers and cheering of people now. Carter Jones, Defeater of the Mafia. He exhaled another puff of smoke and grinned, revealing his slightly crooked teeth, not that anyone was here to see now.

The next page featured two men who Carter recognised. He gritted his teeth an read on with disgust. Stanley Brooklyns and Tony Tohni, both in their late twenties, both ex-cops who went corrupt, both ended up on the streets until Marko found use of them. The two were Thorn’s main source of intel, finding flaws in the police department and hidden places no one but they knew existed. Tony was tall, brown hair, dark green eyes, constantly wearing a grey beanie. Stanley was slightly shorter but more muscular, he has light brown hair and eyes the colour of the sky. The two were the greatest partners, taking down crime all over New York, but now it’s them that needs taking down. The infamous duo. Danger Level: highly dangerous, arrest immediately, kill if shots are fired.

Carter knew them, hell he even trained them. The thought of these two made him sick, how could anyone turn their backs on the law like that? He threw his cigarette into the ash tray beside him and leaned back into his black leather chair, the folder was held tightly in his calloused fingers. Unable to look at that page anymore he flicked to the next, smirking slightly to himself at what was before him.

The next profile contained the images of three girls in their late teens to early twenties. One had amber eyes and short black hair which faded to platinum, one had her blonde hair tied back into two ponytails with icy cold eyes and the last one looked similar to Tony. All of them were covered in blood, Amber-Eyes had a lopsided smile, the knives she was holding was stained with crimson and she was proud of it. Her name is Lindsey Nestor, she’s got a tattoo on her lower stomach that reads ‘I’m on my knees but not to pray’, the blonde girl, Harley, has tattoos as well, an ace of diamonds inked into her upper right arm, the image of her shows Harley proudly showing it off. The final girl is Stella Tohni, Tony’s younger sister. Carter has met her once, he’s sure he’s seen the other two in person. The Sirens. Danger Level: highly dangerous, arrest immediately, kill if shots are fired.

The detective blinked down at the page, running a hand through his coffee brown hair, there were many more profiles to go, he sighed to himself, placing the pages to the side for a moment before stretching and standing next to the window which was now covered in a thin layer of frost from the winter air. He opened it, an ice cold breeze rushed in, he took a deep breath and exhaled, a white wispy mist came from his mouth, this time not from cigarettes. Below cars honked as people made their way into home for the night. The moon was hidden behind a layer of clouds, Carter looked down at the city below, somewhere, out there was the Thorn Empire, somewhere the people in the pictures were possibly planning another big scheme.

He groaned and closed the window in frustration after snow started coming in. He returned to his desk, it creaked under his weight. His cold hands reached out for the papers, instead he knocked them to the ground, shivering from the air. He silently cursed himself but was too lazy to pick them all up again. He simply sat on his chair and looked at the pages scattered along the ground, he read each name out loud. Georgie Widacker, Harley’s older brother, there was Stella, Frank Pryce, Vinnie Ramos, Daniel Jekylls, Anthony, Stella, Stanley. Carter let out a hiss of annoyance at Stanley. Forget being the one to take down the Thorn Empire, he was sick of this, sick of them. He was however, going to at least bring down Stanley and Tony, kill them if he has to. And he has no problem with killing. The only problem was they didn’t have a problem with killing either.

The game of cat and mouse has begun, the only question is….

Who’s who?


	2. Georgie

He’s sitting in a black chair, he’s got a black cat in his lap, his expensive suit is black, everything is black. Despite the brightness of the light in the room his face is hidden beneath his fedora. I can’t tell if he’s frowning or smiling, he only wears the same poker face look. It’s always plastered to his face. He called me to this room what feels like an eternity ago, but I’ve only been standing here for a minute. There’s a sense of tension in the room that I can’t quite place. My hand instinctively brushes through the golden locks of my short blonde hair. The man sitting in the chair suddenly speaks up.

“Where is it?” he almost growls. 

Frank is standing beside me, he doesn’t flinch. It’s funny, I’ve known this man all my life but I’m scared of him, Frank on the other hand only met him a few months ago. I guess it’s because he doesn’t have to worry about being ‘taken out of the picture’ like I do, he’s only a supplier. I’m the negotiator for Thorn, I can’t mess up my job. I’m the one who gets them out of sticky situations, I’m the one who makes deals for shipments of cargo, I’m the one who talks. The Smooth Talker. That’s what everyone else calls me. Frank is speaking now but I’m not focused on what he’s saying, my eyes are glued to the trapdoor that’s hidden under an elegant rug. 

“You know what to do. Go.” It’s the man sitting in the chair, it’s Marko.

I’m standing around in a daze, Frank notices an pulls me out of the room, I stumble after him. I hadn’t listened to anything Marko said, I look to Frank, expecting him to explain what’s going on like he usually does. I’ve come to trust him in the few months we’ve been working together, we’re almost friends. None of us joined to make friends, we only joined to get the jobs done, the pay is great and that’s really the only thing on our minds. 

“A shipment of drugs we were supposed to receive hasn’t arrived yet, I know I sent it out before, came ‘ere to oversee the operation, hasn’t arrived. You know the drill, go out and find it, take the bitches and dogs with you,” with that Frank saunters down the grand marble hall where two buff looking men were standing. He starts talking and laughing with them, a wave of jealousy rushes over me but I brush it off, I’m not here to make friends. I head in the opposite direction to him, I don’t know what makes me forget to knock but I barge in through a door. Lindsey, Harley and Stella are all there, they shriek in fright and fall backwards. Then my sister grabs her baseball bat and stomps towards me.

“Georgie knock you fucker, or next time I’ll knock you out,” she raises her bat threateningly above her head but I’m a good foot taller than her so she’s not scary. I laugh. She hits me in the ribcage, it knocks the wind from my body and I’m groaning in pain on the ground. Luckily for me she didn’t use full force so I’m pretty sure my ribs got away with being fractured, it’d still leave a bruise though. That’s family for you. Stella and Lindsey walk over to help me up. Once I’m back on my feet I clear my throat, acting as if that little incident never happened. I ignore the snickers coming from their mouths. Fuck them.

“Marko sent me, we gotta go,” I murmur which is sort of ironic since I’m the spokesman. 

The girls stop their childish giggles and snickers, their faces take on a more serious look and they get ready. I leave the room and head outside. It takes me a good five minutes to leave the mansion since the place is so big, I’ve been here all my life and I know I haven’t seen every single room. Marko knows though, he knows everything. 

There’s a soft snow fall outside, it’s hard to breathe although I’m not sure whether it’s the weather or Harley hitting me with the bat. I stride over to the doghouse, before it’s even in sight I can hear the barking. Four Doberman Pinschers, the cliché black and brown guard dogs you see in movies, are clawing at the gate that holds them back from greeting me. The largest of the four, Mace, tries to jump over the gate, he almost succeeds. Bullet is the smallest, unlike the others he’s brown and tan in colour, Bullet tries weaving his body between the metal bars without success. I open the gate and the four dogs jump on me, their tongues lolling out of their mouths and their tails wagging furiously. These dogs are probably the only things that like me in this place. They’re normally extremely vicious towards outsiders, but they love us. They’d die for us.

The pack leader, Dagger, nudges her head under my hand, asking for pats. I stroke her smooth fur and smile to myself. The last dog, Blade, notices and she pushes Dagger out of the way. The pack leader growls in annoyance and nips her ear, Blade whines and backs down. Reluctantly I get up, the dogs are well trained so they follow me all the way to the imposing doors at the front of the mansion. Harley, Lindsey and Stella are already there waiting for me, they’re arms are crossed over their chests and they’re looking at me unimpressed. Of course, I made them stand out in the snow while I played with dogs.

We all silently get into a car. The silence is heavy and weighing down on all of us, even the dogs are quiet. There’s always that chance, that possibility that we’re driving towards our deaths. We live off that wave of adrenaline. Harley’s in the back polishing her bat, Lindsey’s sharpening her knives, Stella’s got her two handguns. I don’t have weapons, I’m not a fighter and never have been. I’m relying on them and the dogs to take care of me. 

We’re in the city now, amber lights cast grey shadows across the streets. Somewhere above a man is looking out an open window, wondering where a bunch of highly dangerous criminals were. Night in New York has always been different to the day, during the day the streets are filled with people busy working or tourists visiting. But at night it’s a different story, the freaks come out to play. The homeless roam the city like an infestation of rats. To the better off, breathing the same air as them was a sin. I know how it feels to be out-casted by society, all of us at Thorn do.

The car pulls into an alleyway and abruptly stops sending all of us flying in the car from momentum. We scowl at the driver but he doesn’t give two shits about us, only the job he’s being paid for and that job is now done, anymore time he spends here he won’t be getting paid for. The driver leaves in a rush, Blade and Dagger stand to the right of me while Mace and Bullet are on my left. I watch the girls disappear, blending in with the black background of the brick walls. It’s too quiet here, somewhere a pipe is leaking and creating an annoying dripping sound. I step over piles of rubbish. It’s too quiet… I know someone is here before the dogs start barking.

I turn around and it’s too late, a pain shoots through my thigh and a fist meets my face. My vision starts going blurry, Harley appears at my side, she’s shouting something at me but it’s too distorted. Stella’s firing away, Lindsey is throwing knives at the shadows, everything is starting to go black. The last thing I remember is that I’ve been shot. And the darkness takes over.

“Georgie.”

I’m reminded of my childhood, I remember that childish voice talking to me when I had fallen from a tree. Full of so much concern.

“Georgie.”

I open my eyes and it’s almost as if I’m sent back in time, I’m looking at four year old Harley, with her inquisitive blue eyes and muddy blonde hair. She’s staring down at me, she cares for me. I’m looking at nineteen year old Harley, she still cares even if she doesn’t act like it. She hooks one of my arms over her shoulder and Stella takes the other one. Bullet is licking my face, the other three dogs are standing guard. I wince when I put pressure on my leg, there’s a trail of blood leaking down my leg, I don’t want to look but I do. My jeans are ripped, there’s a perfect circle where the bullet has entered my skin. I want to cry but I can’t, I won’t, I’m supposed to be strong. Stella and Harley start dragging me towards safety.

“Where’s Lindsey?” I ask, absent minded. Stella and Harley both exchange glances and I know something’s up. So I ask them again.

“Where’s Linds?” 

Harley sighs and Stella fights back tears. “She’s been taken.” It’s like a blow to the face. I don’t know what to do, Lindsey was my friend, I should go after her, rescue her. I can’t though, I’m in no condition to go anywhere. Then I look at Stella and my sister, they’ll save her, they care so much about her. But what if Lindsey’s already dead? The voice in my mind asks, I push the thought away, she can’t be. She’s a fighter. I spot something on the ground, it’s surrounded in blood but perfectly clean and tidy, it was placed there.

A black raven feather.

Lindsey might not be as safe as I thought.


	3. Lindsey

Time slows down while heartbeats get faster. I react but not soon enough, my hands are on my knives, my knives are flying through the air. Blink and you’d miss it. The blade cuts a deep gash through someone’s arm, I see him whirl around to face me. My fist flies out and I hit his face with the blunt end of the knife, it’s a shame, he was pretty good looking. Stella and Harley join me. It’s all a blur of limbs and cries of pain, I spot Georgie in the fight, I don’t have any time to warn him when a punch is landed to the side of his face. He falls on the ground. Unconscious.

I’m hacking away at any one who stands in front of me, blood is going everywhere, it’s in my eyes. All I see is a red glaze, there are hands on me. I hear a scream and I’m vaguely aware that it’s coming from me. Harley is shouting something. I’m going to die. I wait for my attacker to finish me off, seconds grow longer. How am I not dead? Then I’m being taken away, my heart sinks as I realise I’m being kidnapped. I’m helpless. I’d rather die.

I hear a voice beside me, “I’m not going to kill you.”

Then I follow Georgie into unconsciousness.

 

* * *

 

 

When I was five I cried when my dog died. My parents said it will be okay, he’s in a better place now. I believed them. When I was ten I watched my house burn down. My parents didn’t say anything, they didn’t make it. I started to realise how unfair life really was. When I was fifteen I was homeless and killed someone, the first in a line of many. The man was going to hurt me; I did what I had to do. I felt no remorse, no guilt. In a matter of ten years I had gone from an innocent child to a monster, what’s wrong with me? I found a living working in a strip club, not ideal but anything for money. There I met Stella and Harley. Then Marko found us and took us in. He doesn’t seem like it but he cares. Thorn became my new family. And now my family has been taken away from me again.

I’m gagged. I’m blindfolded. I’m tied up and bound down. My throat is already raw from screaming, and I’m too exhausted to fight back. I feel a set of hands untie me, the blindfold comes off and I’m surprised to see it’s not a burly tattooed middle aged man looking at me but a young guy around my age. He’s got sandy blonde hair and eyes as green as grass. He’s gorgeous but I don’t say this out loud. Instead I stare, my face pulled back in a snarl. He doesn’t speak, he doesn’t even look me in the eyes. Suddenly I’m craving for his attention and I don’t know why. Then the ropes are gone and he finally looks me sadly in the eyes. He leaves the cell, that’s when I notice the other people in the room.

One of them has a large purple bruise under his eye, I recognise him. He was that good looking guy I decked. The other man I recognise too, there’s a deep gash in his arm from my knife. The last person is a girl, she’s in her early thirties, or late twenty’s. Her eyes are amber like mine but there’s a red ring around the pupil. Her hair’s black and her skin is tanned, she’s not from around here. Mexico? Cuba? I don’t know. But when she speaks it’s as if she’s lived in New York all her life.

“Brendon, Lachlan, give us a moment please.”

And the two men move, standing just outside the door. If I tried to run now I’d die so I stay put. The girl has a raven perched on her shoulder, its head is held high but its eyes are firmly locked on me. She whispers something to it and strokes its feathers, then looks back at me expectantly. I realise she’s waiting for me to speak but my mouth is dry and all words have left me. She picks up on this and speaks again.

“Oliver thought it was a good idea to keep you prisoner, but I have no use for prisoners. He says you’re special though, you work for…. Mr Black?” she raises an eyebrow at me, she’s intrigued by me. I keep my mouth shut, I don’t want to speak to her about Marko, I don’t want to speak to her in general. When she notices my reluctance to speak she laughs. It’s cold and chilling, goose bumps form on my skin as I begin to understand what’s happened and who I’m talking to.

“My apologies, I should introduce myself, I am Skylar Raven, I’m sure you’ve heard of me,” Skylar smirks. I can’t breathe; I press myself up against the wall behind me. I want to just disappear, why couldn’t I have died at the fight? Now she’s going to torture me, she’s going to try to get every bit of information she can out of me. I still keep silent and she’s starting to get agitated now. “Oliver can still be wrong you know, after all, I have no use looking after someone like you.” I flinch when she says ‘looking after’ fuck her, she doesn’t give a shit about me. I spit a ball of saliva into her face. She wipes it away. The raven caws, and she chuckles.

“There’s a difference between bravery and stupidity,” she says clearly. Brendon and Lachlan are still standing outside, but they’re watching the exchange with interest now. Skylar kneels down beside me, I want to punch her but something stops me, my eyes lock with another person’s just outside the cell. The guy with sandy blonde hair and green eyes, he’s here, I assume this is Oliver. Strange, he was the one who saved me, but why? Skylar smiles and her eyes light up as if she has an idea.

“Witlock, get in here,” her voice is stern. The boy stumbles in, his eyes are wild and scared, like prey that’s about to be caught. “Oliver Witlock, I’m assigning you the task of getting her to talk.” Then Skylar’s grinning and walking out the cell, Brendon and Lachlan trailing after her. I’m alone with this strange boy. The cell smells like the rotting scent of death, I wouldn’t be surprised if the last person in here died. I find myself shuddering at the thought, I’m probably going to end up like that person. A tear escapes my eye, I find myself wishing I was with back home. My real home, not Thorn, not the strip club, not the streets. I want my parents back, I want to be loved again.

Oliver sits down next to me, it’s not professional at all. I’m so confused by this boy. This boy, who I’m currently crying in front of, who for some reason decided to save me instead of killing me. It would’ve been so much easier if I died. Stella and Harley will come after me, but I don’t want them in danger. I don’t want anybody in danger. I’m aware that I’m being hypocritical, after two years of working as a hitman I’ve put hundreds in danger. No, not in danger, they’re all dead. They can’t be in danger when they’re dead. I wonder if Stella and Harley think I’m dead, what will they tell Marko. A part of me says I’ll never see them again, not Georgie, not Harley, not Marko, not Frank, not even Anthony.

Oliver sighs; he’s leaning against the wall next to me. He doesn’t say anything and eventually I cry myself to sleep.


	4. Marko

A black feather. Out of everything that’s the first thing I spot. A black feather in Georgie’s bloodied hand. He limps into the room, he’s groaning in pain but trying to put up a brave face. The feather is dripping with blood, his blood. Stella and Harley are standing beside him, both are covered in bruises and small cuts but nothing major. Georgie and Harley’s blonde hair are stained red, there’s rips in their clothing. Harley’s smirking like she just had the greatest night. Stella’s standing there with a hand on her hip.

I raise an eyebrow, “where’s Linds?” and suddenly all of their postures change, it’s as if the wooden floorboards just became the most interesting thing in the world. Georgie taps his foot, something he always does when he’s nervous. The two girls are fighting back tears. I look between all of them then my eyes lock on the black feather.

“Captured,” Georgie’s voice falters slightly, he’s trying to sound strong but that’s just not him. He shifts his leg slightly which only causes it to bleed more. I sigh, it’s more of a sigh of sadness than disappointment but they don’t know that. I send the three out of the room with the wave of my hand. Harley and Stella bolt out while Georgie limps after them, once the door closes I get up from my chair. My black cat, Thorn, jumps from my lap. He stretches out his legs and gives his paws a clean before disappearing out the window. For a few moments I watch the black shape vanish into the snow.

When I turn around again I’m almost jump scared. Anthony is looking at me, watching me. He has a habit of appearing randomly, sometimes I question whether he is even human at all. Many call him a monster, but then again aren’t we all? I greet my friend with a subtle tilt of my hat, when he grins it’s the perfect image of an insane person. If you could call that perfect that is. Anthony joins me by the window, his hair looks like a dark blue-grey in this light when in reality its icy blue.

“What are we going to do?” his eyes flash with excitement and anticipation. I can tell he’s eager to get back out in the field, to be honest I am too. My hands itch to pull a trigger, to end someone’s life. Perhaps I’m just as insane as Anthony is.

“We’re going out.”

He nods, his face is blank and solemn but I know underneath he’s jumping like a child. We both leave the room, neither of us tell anyone where we’re going. I leave Frank in charge of the place while I’m gone, normally it’d be Georgie but he’s not in good condition right now. We both stock up on weapons and money. Anthony takes a handful of explosives, many I don’t even know how to use, he grabs a cooking pan as well, why? I have no fucking idea. I just take a handgun and a knife, simple is good.

Once we’re loaded we head outside. The sky is a canvas of purples, reds and pinks now. I haven’t slept all night, I’m blaming that one on my insomnia. We take a car and leave the safety of the gated manor behind. Anthony is staring blankly at the horizon, when the sun appears he doesn’t tear his eyes away from it. I pull the car up into an alley, the same one I told the others to go to last night.

It’s almost as if someone repainted the ground. Everywhere we step there’s puddles of red, I vaguely wonder whether anyone died here or not. There’s a few marks on the walls where bullets had impacted, the shells of them scattered on the floor like broken glass.

I jump at the sound of metal on metal, my gun is already drawn and aimed in the direction. I sigh in relief and lower it, it’s only Anthony tapping the pan on a dumpster. A pug jumps out of it and starts barking at him. It’s an ugly thing, it looks as if all the fat left his body to reside in his neck. The thing is flea ridden with grimy matted fur, the folds of his neck have dirt stuck between them. The pug is the definition of ugly. But Anthony already has him in his arms, he’s patting it and cooing at it as if it was the cutest puppy. It’s stubby little tail starts wagging and I’m unsure whether to smile or be concerned by the sight.

“I shall call you…” I watch him think, it’s as if this will be the biggest decision in his life, “Dave.” With that he sets the ugly thing on the ground. It loves him already, Dave starts running in circles around Anthony’s legs yapping at him in its high-pitched dog voice. I watch my friend sit down and start talking to it, I’ll never understand him. I go back to searching for clues.

There’s footprints in the blood and snow mixture, I can tell by the size they belong to a man, I also see marks where someone has been dragged along the ground…

 

* * *

 

_She didn’t struggle, she was quiet, her breaths faint and shallow. Of course she couldn’t do anything, she was knocked unconscious. Her friends fought against the attackers, but they were outnumbered, 2 to 1. Georgie was lying knocked out on the pavement not far from where the girl, Lindsey, was. Blood splattered over the two of them, but they couldn’t wipe their faces clean. They only sleep, unable to reach reality. Stella and Harley were giving it their all, but it wasn’t enough. Lindsey was dragged away, and her friends were left screaming and crying._

* * *

 

I opened my eyes again, I know how much emotion and pain is connected to this place. I kick angrily at the wall, there’s nothing. Nothing here to help me find my friend. Friend… I know that’s not the sole reason for coming here. I push the thought from my mind. I’m about to call it quits when red and blue lights fill the alley.


	5. Anthony

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More of Marko's chapter but this is the first time something's written from Anthony's point of veiw so yeah. Also drug use :p

**Anthony’s POV**

Flashes of red and blue light up the darkness. Marko’s already running but I’m standing around in a daze. I spot the source of the red and blue lights, a dragon at a rave party firing it’s beautiful music through the silent streets. I giggle slightly, and wave to the dragon, it waves back. The creature yells out to me, “You are so fucked up, my friend.” I take a few steps towards the dragon, every step I take it moves back. I start running towards it with my arms wide open, I’m laughing.

“Dance Anthony! Dance! You’re in the spotlight now, buddy! Dance like there’s no tomorrow, my friend!”

And with that I dance with the grace of a ballerina.

**Marko’s POV**

I reach the other end of the alley, when I turn back Anthony’s gone. Then I spot him, he’s running towards the fattest cop with his arms open wide, he’s the bravest man I’ve ever met. I’m glad I saved him from that mental asylum. His fighting technique is remarkable, the four officers have no chance against him. Anthony starts swinging his arms around, smacking the first man hard in the face and causing blood to come flying from his mouth.  He does a twirl and punches another man in the gut. I vaguely wonder if I should go an help him or not.

Nah, he’ll be fine, he’s got this.

 

**Anthony’s POV**

I have no idea what I’m doing. I can’t dance, the dragon knows that, so why is he telling me to dance? All I remember is playing with these stickers and having the rest of my funny sherbet before we left, and now the sudden urge to prance is growing. Suddenly my location changes and I’m in a meadow, there’s bubbles beneath my feet. I stand on one of them, it pops and rainbow goo oozes out of it. The goo starts forming a trail beneath my feet and I happily skip down it. The purple dragon has disappeared, but I have a new friend. Waiting for me at the end of the trail, is Dave.

“G’day mate,” his voice is deep and rough, so out of place on a tiny pug. I’m taken aback a little, but my hand goes out to pat him nonetheless. “Awh, yeah, mate that’s the spot. You really are a right bloke, aye mate.” I smile down at Dave, his little back leg is twitching and his tail is wagging, his other tail is wagging too.

“Hey little guy, you wanna come home with us? You look like a good boy.” He stares up at me, raising his weird flabby eyebrows.

“You know what? Why the fuck not, aye. Sure mate,” the pug responds to me.  I pick him up in my arms which are covered in that rainbow goo, he squirms in my grip but I hold him tighter, closer, I breathe in his dog scent. It’s strong, musky and wet. I take the pug back down the rainbow trail, Marko’s waiting for me at the other end.

 

**Marko’s POV**

Anthony’s walking towards me. I’m slightly confused but awestruck of what I just watched. He had taken on four men, and now all of them are left on the ground. Dead. One of which Anthony crushed his head under the weight of his body, blood oozing out of it and trailing down the alley into a drain. He makes his way over to me, holding Dave the pug in his hands. Anthony acts as if he hadn’t just killed four people, well I suppose killing is normal for us now.

“Bravo Lawton, bravo,” I clap him on the back. He looks at me, utterly confused.

“But I can’t dance,” he replies sadly. Now I’m even more confused than he is. I shake my head slowly and laugh; it’s a laugh many people call chilling, sounds almost mocking even.

I quickly run from the scene, Anthony trails behind me but is slowed down by Dave. We make it back to the car and speed back to the mansion. I’m cursing under my breath, we haven’t got anything. Not a single clue, unless you count the feather. At least we know who has Lindsey.

Skylar Raven. I sigh, we go back a long way… I push memories out of my head, I can’t be thinking like this now, she’s my arch nemesis. Besides, I have greater worries, like Lindsey and whatever’s up with Anthony.

“Did you take drugs again?” I say while driving, my eyes are glued to the road.

Anthony shrugs, his unnatural blue hair shines under the sunlight, “you mean the sherbet and funny stickers?”

I swear he’s a literal child sometimes but he’s a good friend nonetheless. We make it back to the mansion, it’s almost noon now. Stella, Harley and Georgie rush out expecting to see Lindsey. I turn away, knowing I’ve disappointed them. How can the great Marko Black fail a mission? At least Anthony can get away with anything, everyone’s scared of him. When he’s not on drugs that is.

I push past the crowd, ignoring the burning gazes of everyone. Anthony stays outside, he’s too busy playing with Dave. I hear disgusted noises coming from the girls, they’ve spotted the pug I assume. I close the door, muffling their voices. I head towards my room, I deserve a sleep. Then I’m stopped by two men. Tony Tohni and Stanley Brooklyns. Tony runs a hand through his greasy long hair, he looks away from me, so I look expectantly at Stanley. His face turns serious and he opens his mouth to talk.

“He’s coming for us.”


	6. Carter

I can hear the shrieks of terror in the background. The person speaking to me tries to be calm and collected but I know they’re on the brink of a mental breakdown. He’s saying my name over and over again as if I’m not listening to a word he’s saying. _Please, come now._ The wailing in the background gets louder as the other person gets closer to the phone, I hear some shuffling, then sniffles and I know someone new has the phone.  The new person takes a shaky breath.

“They’re all dead.”

Death doesn’t seem to faze me anymore, there’s so much of it. People are oblivious or maybe they just don’t want to acknowledge it, but we’re all gonna die someday, no point in ignoring the signs above our heads. Of course, I don’t say this over the speaker, instead I say something else.

“What’s your address?”

I sigh quietly to myself, another murder case. All I want to do is track down Thorn. There’s more crying on the other side of the line, I can’t take another minute of their pathetic whining. I slam down the phone, putting an abrupt end to the shrieking. I grab my coat off the rack, it may be sunny outside but there’s still snow everywhere.

While walking through the building I pass a room, I pause a moment. This room is filled with too many memories, some good and some bad…

_They were overly excited. Working as an officer was their dream since they were little and now they’re finally here. The boy with the brown hair and green eyes ran towards the desk nearest the window, claiming it as his own. His best friend took the seat next to him, both of them were in awe. They made it. They got their dream. But I guess that was just it, they conquered their dream and now there was nothing left for them to do. And almost as quickly as they made it they threw it away. It’s a shame really, we were almost friends. Friends… that word is like acid in the mouth now. No, they’re my enemies…_

I snap out of the trance I was in, the room is still the same way they left it, with papers all over the floors, holes in the walls, there’s broken glass too. Nobody has bothered cleaning it up, I think everyone else is still shocked one of us can turn like that. I move away from the scene, no one looks up to see where I’m going.

The address I was given isn’t too far so I walk in the general direction. By the time I reach the alley it’s noon, I’ll admit I’m a little shaken by the scene before me. There are other officers already here, about ten in total if you count me and the dead ones. There’s four bodies scattered on the ground, none of them are in one piece. I grimace at the one with the crushed head, his brain matter is seeping out of the cracks in his skull, his tongue is lolled out and his eyes are open and glazed over. Its gruesome, whoever did this was a monster. I never want to meet the person behind this.

I move quietly through, no one seems to take notice of me. I grit my teeth, someday they’ll all know me. I’ll be the greatest officer to live, but for now I’ll just stick to the sidelines. While everyone isn’t paying attention I look for clues, the officers on scene are too busy crying over lost colleagues. I knew them, can’t say I cared though. I spot a strand of hair on the ground, slowly I bend over to pick it up. I examine it, it’s unnatural, an icy blue colour. There’s a tugging in the back of my mind but I can’t seem to figure it out so instead I put the strand away to look at later.

Finally someone notices me here, but it’s not even my co-workers who are still sobbing and balling their eyes out. Pathetic. Instead a homeless man shuffles out from behind the dumpster, his eyes are wild, his hair dishevelled. I’m surprised nobody saw him, hell I’m surprised nobody smelt him. The voice in the back of my mind says this is a trick, he’s the one that did all this. I shake the thought, the man’s so bony he’d just break like a twig in a fight. I decide to talk to him, maybe he knows something.

And it turns out he does. The man, who I found out is named Derrick, tells me he saw it all. Two men, one with a hat, one with a permanent smile, walked into the alley. There was blood when they got here already, they were looking for something. But what? I take the strand of hair from my pocket, that’s when it hits me. Is it possible… Marko Black and Anthony Lawton were here? I’m lost in thought yet again. Derrick kicks me in the shin.

“They stole my fucking dog too,” he cries, he’s being sincere. I give him a look that says ‘I don’t give two shits about a lost dog’, he shuts up after that.

“Did you see where the men went?” I ask. I sticks a bony finger towards the road and tells me they talked about some mansion and _Lindsey_ and _Skylar._  I give him my thanks and pass him a hundred dollar bill, Derrick’s face lights up. He shuffles out of the alley, before disappearing from sight. I look around, still no one notices me or the homeless man.

I sneak away almost as quickly as I appeared. My mind starts racing, where were the people who called me? Who’s Skylar? Where’s Black?

At least I have some leads now. I’m going to find him or die trying.


	7. Lindsey

_I’m sitting on the swings of a playground, my playground, mum and dad wanted me out of the house for a bit. People were coming over and they didn’t want me interacting with them, I didn’t mind, I wasn’t very talkative anyways. So I went to the one place that was a home away from home, a haven. My playground. I’m swinging my legs back and forth, higher and higher still. I reach out to grab at the brightening stars; I close my eyes and imagine I’m flying through the skies. The wind on my face chills me but adds to the affect. I’m just a child, I’m young, I’m innocent, here I’m free._

And here I’m trapped. The warmth of the dream soon leaves me and I’m left with the feeling of suadade. Suadade, a deep emotional state of longing for someone or something that is absent.  My wrists are still sore from where the rope bound them down, there’s marks around them like little red valleys in my skin. I trace over them with my fingers, I feel the dip in each one, there’s slight bruising and swelling in areas that make me wince when I touch it. I hear a clattering outside my cell, then a plate of food slides in. I look at the meal, I never realised how hungry I was until now but I refuse to eat. I tell myself starving to death is better than whatever Skylar has planned for me, so I leave the appetising plate untouched.

Oliver appears at the door, when he sees I’m not eating he comes in. I’m so confused, I could’ve been planning to attack him, but he takes the risk. He grabs the plate and sits next to me before shoving the meal onto my lap. He sits in silence, looking at everything but me. I’m the complete opposite, I can’t help but stare at this strange boy. For the first time I really take in the details of his face, his eyes are emerald green, his hair is a muddy blonde colour, his jaw is sharp but slightly off centre.  He’s pretty good looking although I don’t say this out loud. Oliver doesn’t look that much older than me either, probably two years older at most. I’m just about comfortable with the silence when he speaks, making me knock the food all over the floor in fright.

“Are you gonna stop staring at me and eat- never mind,” he murmurs. He gets up from his spot in my cell and walks out. _My cell_. It’s hell in here. I blink away tears as a wave of nostalgia hits me. This cell is the complete opposite to my haven. The playground I hung out at as a child, those days seem so long ago now. I’m drowning in memories, my mind’s a shipwreck. I’m trying to swim but the waves of everything I’ve done wrong are pulling me deeper into the murky depths of the ocean. It’s all spilling out my eyes, as if I hadn’t cried enough already.

I don’t notice Oliver re-entering the room. My hands are covering my face, my knees are locked and pressed up against my chest.

“Lindsey…” he says softly. I ignore his strangely soothing voice. He says my name again, a bit harsher this time, but the harshness sounds forced. I look up and see him standing with a lady, Skylar. She brushes her short black hair out of her face, Oliver is frozen, his body tense. He’s scared, I know that much. He has that look in his eyes, like a deer just before a wolf has sunk it’s teeth into it, like a pig being sent to the slaughterhouse. This is it isn’t it? This is the end for me.

“Are you going to talk now?” her voice is way too cheery. It kinda reminds me of Anthony, another tear escapes. I decide to talk, if I’m going to die I don’t want anyone else to too. Oliver should live, I’m taken aback that I’d save Oliver but I don’t worry about that now.

“Yes,” my voice is coarse and rough, I clear my throat and say it again. “Yes,” it comes out clearer this time but you can’t miss the fear in my voice.

Skylar smiles, as if this was the desired outcome. A tanned hand finds its way to her hip, she looks almost sassy like this. My amber eyes stare into hers. She opens her mouth again, “where’s Marko?” I whimper slightly, I’m terrified at this point. I run through my options, tell her where Marko is and possibly kill Marko and everyone else including me, I’d be prolonging my death that way, or I don’t tell her and she kills me right here. I’m desperately searching for a way out, she smiles knowing she has one.

But then she does something no one but her saw coming.

Her movements are fast, precise, in a matter of a few milliseconds she has Oliver in a headlock with a knife to his throat. He doesn’t struggle, only looks at me with wide eyes as the blade slowly traces a line across his throat, each time cutting deeper.

I freak out, I shriek, “there’s a mansion where we all live, that’s where you’ll find Marko, let him go.” Skylar smirks, she’s won, Oliver gets shoved to the ground. He holds the place on his neck where there’s a thin line of blood. I run to his side, the cut isn’t too deep. I realise I probably care too much about this strange boy, maybe because he saved my life the first time? But that doesn’t make sense, I saved his, we should be even now right? But I don’t leave his side, I look at Skylar who’s watching the interaction with interest.

“Wh-why didn’t you threaten to kill me?” I’m slightly hyperventilating, the ordeal becoming almost too much for me. Skylar kneels down so she’s face to face with me. A soft hand slowly strokes me face, it’s her hand. A hand that has probably, like mine, killed hundreds. I blink, a new emotion crosses her face, I’m so confused, her gaze softens for a moment before she drops the bomb.

“You’re my daughter.”

Then Skylar Raven leaves me crying on the cell floor with Oliver who looks just as shocked as I am. Skylar Raven, my mother? No, she can’t be. My mother’s dead, this is a trick. A lie, but for what? What possible reason is there for her to lie about this? 

I listen to footsteps of Skylar as she walks away, leaving me with more questions than answers.

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Learning To Smile](https://archiveofourown.org/works/12889587) by [JHR_Angel](https://archiveofourown.org/users/JHR_Angel/pseuds/JHR_Angel)




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